Linkfest: New projects and old comics

Graphic Novel Reporter, which has been in the works for a little while, launched today. With feature stories, lists of upcoming releases, and a bodacious review section (just bookmark the kids and teens areas now!), this site looks like it will be both an interesting read and a valuable resource. Full disclosure: I am a reviewer for GNR, as are fellow Good Comics for Kids bloggers Robin Brenner and Eva Volin. So you know it’s good!

There was exciting news on the manga front as well yesterday when Udon finally officially announced their Kids Manga line. The four launch titles are a mix of fantasy, sports, music, and very light sci-fi. There really aren’t a lot of titles for younger readers at the moment—mostly the kids are reading up, which isn’t necessarily a good thing—so this should be a good move. Anyway, they had me at "ninja baseball player."

Free Comic Book Day is six months away, but that doesn’t stop J. Caleb Mozzocco from pre-judging the scheduled lineup. Here’s what I can’t figure out: Why don’t they call the Simpsons comic something like "The Simpsons"? I would think the brand name would be a selling point, whereas no one outside the comics world (and a lot of people inside it) knows what "Bongo" is.

Noah Berlatsky has some questions about the Justice League comic his son is reading. Back at NYCC last spring, DC’s Jann Jones remarked that a lot of the writers for their kids’ line would rather have been working on adult titles. That’s what comes through here, and Berlatsky’s takedown is pretty funny. Check the comments to Noah’s post for an interesting dissenting view, though.

Yamila Abraham, the publisher of Yaoi Press, does a year-in-review post that includes an interesting insight. YP publishes global yaoi, and the majority of their titles are rated 16+ and 18+.

There’s been steady growth in digital sales with our titles on Netcomics.com. This is the only area where we see our young adult titles continue to flourish. The audience for the site is much younger than the audience purchasing our hard-copy books.

Brigid Alverson, the editor of the Good Comics for Kids blog, has been reading comics since she was 4. She has an MFA in printmaking and has worked as a book editor and a newspaper reporter; now she is assistant to the mayor of Melrose, Massachusetts. In addition to editing GC4K, she writes about comics and graphic novels at MangaBlog, SLJTeen, Publishers Weekly Comics World, Comic Book Resources, MTV Geek, and Good E-Reader.com. Brigid is married to a physicist and has two daughters in college, which is why she writes so much. She was a judge for the 2012 Eisner Awards.

About Good Comics For Kids

We are a group of librarians, parents, and writers--and most of us wear at least two of those hats--who started writing about kids' comics in 2008 because, well, nobody else was. We like everything from Literary Graphic Novels to blatantly commercial (but fun!) licensed properties. And we don't lump all ages together; we're smart enough to know that a three-year-old has different abilities and interests than a 13-year-old.

Our goal is to cover kids' comics (for readers from birth to age 16) with both breadth and depth, through a mix of news, reviews, interviews, and previews, and to be both accessible to casual readers and interesting enough for serious fans.